Army spokesman Maj. Shaban Bantariza yesterday evening responded cautiously to new proposals for peace talks from Kony rebels.

Maj. Bantariza was reacting to statements made by a caller who reached The Monitor and said he was Col. Sam Kolo of the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA).

"While there is no government or belligerent group in the world that can just wake up one day and observe a cease-fire especially in a situation of mutual suspicion. You have to make practicable proposals," he said on the phone.

The spokesman explained that the LRA need to make "specific proposals" in response to President Yoweri Museveni's suggestions made in his July 20 letter to rebel leader Joseph Kony.

Bantariza, however, said he cannot speak authoritatively for government and advised The Monitor to speak to Defence minister Amama Mbabazi for the official response.

When The Monitor reached the minister the battery of his cell-phone held for only a short time.

"If a president writes to them through a known channel, they should respond through the same channel. That is point number one," Mbabazi said before his battery went dead.

Col. Kolo kept repeating that the LRA do not think Museveni is genuinely interested in peace talks.

He said Museveni's letter said he was forced to consider peace talks by local and international pressure and "indicates that [he] wants war".

Col. Kolo denied the LRA is fighting on behalf of certain politicians as also indicated in the president's letter and quoted a section thus:

"The portion of his letter which was not printed [in the newspapers] in which he said 'Opoka is currently with you telling you that Rwanda and Dr Kizza Besigye will support you. I can assure you that if Rwanda wages war on us by supporting you, we shall fight Rwanda just as we fought Sudan' indicates he is a warmonger. Opoka and Dr Besigye have their own agenda ¼ and if he wants to fight Rwanda that is his business. He should not have us as an excuse," he said.

Col. Kolo denied that the LRA deliberately attacks civilian targets.

"We have the right to defend ourselves when UPDF is attacking us and we will never accept to be confined in southern Sudan as he indicated as a condition of cease-fire. This is our country, the old tricks of confining us will not work," Col. Kolo said.

He also told The Monitor that they are committed to "peace talks" and would want Museveni "to openly declare to all Ugandans and the international community a temporary cease-fire. [But] he should not give us conditions. [However], if he is not ready to declare a cease-fire we shall be committed to peace talks in a foreign country".

Col. Kolo used the same interview to repeat LRA demands that the Acholi abandon the "camps" because the UPDF wants to use them as "human shields".

Deputy presidential press secretary, Onapito Ekomoloit played down Kolo's remarks about Rwanda saying: "As far as I know what appeared in the newspapers is the official position of the president. Whatever the LRA are saying is a concoction of theirs".